I'm ditching my budget.

[loanstar]

you can't take your eyes off debt, having automatic payments is a safety thing but in the long run, especially with credit cards, they cost you more because they only take the minimum payment. you should approach it as a task; pay any surplus you have, watch those interest rates and see where you can transfer for better rates, etc..

[cantretire]

I have everything automatic except my rent check and the occasional 'other'. My utilities and cable pay automatically. One charge card I have to initate on my own, but I do it online. My savings and my big charge are automatic every payday. (i'm trying to get that big card down ASAP. None of my bills have been paid late since I automated everything and I'm actually getting more paid on the cards and extra in my savings.

Each payday, I take out $x and that's it for 2 weeks. I'm careful about spending it. I keep about $100 in cash in the house just in case I have an unexpected, immediate expense - such as bandages for an injury or cold remedies. I find that this is really helping me a lot.

[tbc32]

I enjoyed automatic millionaire and agree that automating most of your expenses certainly makes a lot of sense for most people. I would be careful about throwing away the budget altogether however. Periodically reviewing your expenses is a good idea, even if you are making much more than you are spending. If you don't then being automated could come back to bite... when the market is down, you lose your job, or your spending slowly creeps up and passes your saving.

[Snave]

I just read "Automatic Millionaire" by David Bach and I'm sold. I know I make more than I need to get ahead. I'm going to automate everything and stop worrying about money - period. I changed my 401K to a percentage today, and I'll be scheduling my bills through my automatic billpayer for paydays 6 months out. That way I can stop worrying about whether I have money for this or that - I can just go about my business and be happy. I was doing plenty of the stuff anyways - I need to work on debt and homeownership, but I'm on the way.

A great book that you can read in less than 3 hours.

One thing to note about bill paying. I don't know if you mean you are going to pay online or if when the bill comes in, it will automatically get paid or what. However, I would make sure that you have control (actually pushing the "send" button). I had a friend that got his water bill and it was $10,000one month. Had the money been taken straight from his checking account, he would have been in trouble. By the way, the meter was mis-read. When he called, the gal on the other end just started laughing when she pulled up his bill. She knew they messed up. He had 2 roommates at the time and put the bill on the counter and left a note for them to each leave their 1/3 of the bill for him.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

I had a friend that got his water bill and it was $10,000one month....He had 2 roommates at the time and put the bill on the counter and left a note for them to each leave their 1/3 of the bill for him.

LOL!

[disneysteve]

I would make sure that you have control (actually pushing the "send" button). I had a friend that got his water bill and it was $10,000one month. Had the money been taken straight from his checking account, he would have been in trouble.

That wouldn't have been a problem. They don't charge you without telling you first. Our water bill is on auto-pay from our account. We still get a statement each month about 2 weeks before the payment date. If there was a problem with the bill, I'd have plenty of time to have it corrected before the payment was drawn from my account.

[ThriftoRama]

I read that book and was inspired as well, but I think in a different way than you. I didn't schedule my bill payments, I scheduled my savings. I realized I wasn't adequately paying myself first. Sure, we saved, but we could do so much better.

I started this about 2 months ago and the amount flowing into our savings account alone has quadrupled each month, we also managed to set aside $380 into our stock brokerage acct and $360 into a Roth every month. I didn't contribute anything to those before I sat down and automated. And the weird thing? We don't really miss the money. I have no idea where it was going before.

The bills? I still pay them as they arrive, as usual.

[aevans1206]

I personally like the control of paying bills. Of course, my situation is a tad different due to my difficulties gaining control of finances. Each time I sit down to pay bills, I engage in good habit forming and psychologically, get a boost from it. I am not ready to ditch any budget just yet.

Thrif-o-rama...automated savings is outstanding! It is so important to pay yourself first and making it automated ensures it gets there. Love it, love it, love it!

[maat55]

I'm going to steer clear of that book. I finally have a working budget and have no intention of messing it up. That system is probably really good for a single responsable person, but for two people where one doesn't have a clue, ouch.

[LuxLiving]

Then maat55, you might try his Smart Couples Finish Rich book, which supposedly has a couples workbook. The one major thing I got from his Automatic Millionaire (as I've said here before) was the 401-K explanation that was FINALLY written in a form that helped me explain to myself and Hubster why contributing to one would give us MORE MONEY!! That might seem obvious to some, but it took a while to sink in over here!

Automating savings is one of the better ways to get ahead IMHO! Right after Anticipatory Budgeting. If you own one, you are going to have a car breakdown, might as well plan ahead for the bill.

[maat55]

Then maat55, you might try his Smart Couples Finish Rich book, which supposedly has a couples workbook. The one major thing I got from his Automatic Millionaire (as I've said here before) was the 401-K explanation that was FINALLY written in a form that helped me explain to myself and Hubster why contributing to one would give us MORE MONEY!! That might seem obvious to some, but it took a while to sink in over here!

Automating savings is one of the better ways to get ahead IMHO! Right after Anticipatory Budgeting. If you own one, you are going to have a car breakdown, might as well plan ahead for the bill.

I'm not sure where I differ. I'm debt free, have built an EF, have monthly drafts for investing in MF's and have a care fund that covers buying and repairs. But I do on hands manage it all, for the most part.

As far as finding a way to get my wife to take interest in our finances, I am in desperation. I will check this book out. Thanks.

[LuxLiving]

Does she want to eat when she's an old lady? Go travel w/her female friends after you've passed on? Does she want to have electricity in her old age??? Medicines???

She might want to get interested real quick when you talk to her about her financial well-being in retirement.

Does she work now? Is she busy w/babies??? Doesn't want to talk or work with you on it? Or just busy spending like mad??

[disneysteve]

As far as finding a way to get my wife to take interest in our finances, I am in desperation. I will check this book out. Thanks.

Does she want to eat when she's an old lady? Go travel w/her female friends after you've passed on? Does she want to have electricity in her old age??? Medicines???

She might want to get interested real quick when you talk to her about her financial well-being in retirement.

Perhaps Suze Orman's book about Women and Money would be good for her.

[Fizgig]

I have a paper budget still, but I don't obsess over it daily like I used to. Pretty much everything is automatic - bills get charged to my Amex card, savings are transferred with each paycheck.

It doesn't matter to me anymore if I spend $20 too much on makeup or hair stuff, especially if I spend $20 less on groceries that month. As long as everything balances at the end of the month, I'm happy.

I still track categories so I can see if I'm getting out of control in any particular area, but it's usually not a problem.